Meet Renee Jean: Library Exhibits Student Assistant

The Pollak Library and the CSUF Irvine Center Library are among the largest employers of student assistants at Cal State Fullerton. We have a long history of recruiting and mentoring talented students from across all majors, and are now actively engaged in the campus-wide strategic goal of developing High Impact Practices (HIPs) for these students to help them better succeed in their educational and professional goals. The work they do for us is invaluable, and our libraries could not deliver the high level of services we provide to our campus community and the public without their efforts and expertise.

I work with various curators of displays and exhibits to ensure the best possible implementation, installation, research, and upkeep for each of their projects. Planning, design, and even sometimes construction all go into the student assistant work.

What are you working on right now?

Currently, the student assistants are assisting Trish Campbell with “Pollak Library: 60 Years of Community Service,” her exhibit commemorating the 60 years of the library and all of the programming and events related to it in its history.

How long have you been at the Pollak Library?

Since the Fall semester of 2016.

Have you held any other jobs with Cal State Fullerton?

I have not. I was hired in my first semester at the school when I transferred in 2016.

Do you have a favorite accomplishment at the Pollak Library?

My favorite accomplishment is absolutely the implementation of my own exhibit in the Spring of 2018, “The Nineties in Baseball: A Look Back.” I worked with people from the school and community in order to put on my exhibit about 1990s baseball and it has been a truly rewarding experience.

Editorial Note: Renee did not mention this in her Q&A, but her baseball exhibit was featured in the Orange County Register!

What are your major/degree and/or graduate field, and intended date of completion for your current degree?

I am a history major focused on global twentieth century political violence and terrorism. I will be graduating this spring, 2018, and continuing on to a Master’s program in the fall.

What career/s are you interested in?

I’d like to become either a historical consultant for a political think tank or a research historian.

Has your student work at the Pollak Library helped prepare you for your future career field?

Yes, particularly the research aspects of working in exhibits has helped prepare me to navigate databases, archives, and other collections.

What are your passions or interests outside of work and school?

I enjoy travelling to as many places as my wallet will allow, watching too many documentaries, going to baseball games, and talking about history with anyone who will listen.

Lauren Condina

Lauren is the Communications Student Assistant on the Library Marketing Team. She is a Communications major with an emphasis in Advertising and a minor in Cinema/Television Arts. Lauren will be graduating with her B.A. in Communications in Summer 2018.